Another Special Edition Veyron?

Special Edition Bugatti- Really?

As if it wasn’t bad enough that Bugatti is a car that every adult dreams of,just being able to catch a glimpse of one on the street.Yet, in these tough economic times Bugatti was able to take a ultra exclusive car and make it that much higher to reach with the unveiling at this years Concorso d’Eléganza Villa d’Este. Bugatti revealed four unique Veyrons- Centenaire Editions.
To commemorate the early Bugatti Type 35 Grand Prix race car drivers. Each Veyron took on a very special characteristic as all four were named after a driver. Jean-Pierre Wimille , Achille Varzi, Malcolm Campbell and Hermann zu Leiningen all received there own Veyrons. Bugatti has only made these four Veyron’s to pay homage to Ettore Bugatti’s Masterpiece: The Type 35 Grand Prix.
The Jean –Pierre Wimille car has already been sold to a anonymous gentleman for 1.4 million pounds which if im not mistaken is up wards of $ 3 million US. Tough economic slump so they say, I beg to differ.

MERC'S Experimental Safety Vehicle

Mercedes Benz S- Class , was in fact the first production road vehicle to be fitted with electronic anti-lock brakes, the first in its class to come standard with air bags, Three point seat belts you guess'd it, Sat-Nav, the first vehicle to be available with double glazing windows, the list goes on. If you wanna know what kind of gadget(s)will be fitted to your everyday road car , say ten years from now. Then there is only one place to look, the Mercedes S-Class. Here's a video about their new car called Experimental Safety Vehicle (ESV) 2009. This might give you a slight glimpse in to what other car makers may be putting in to the cars of the future and having this kind of technology readily available to consumers like you and me. This is actually pretty exciting, its always the Germans who are ten leaps ahead of the pack. Check it out.

The GT3 Class.

I was fortunate enough to go on a recent photo shoot up in the Glendora mountains with two of the finest Gt3’s I’ve seen . After a quick glance at these two cars you can see why in addition to the beautiful backdrop of the Glendora mountains that this is picture perfect. The Gt3’s you see here have been meticulously taken care of, just eye candy for the owners garage. I guess if you are in the income bracket where you can have a Gt3 as a weekend car , you must be doing something right. But back to the car’s, they are both GT3’s but one is a late model 2001 996 Porsche Gt3 (Dark Metallic Grey) and the other is the newer successor a 2004 997 GT3 (Silver). Honestly if I had to choose between these two cars hands down I would go with the 997 every time. I mean its just so sexy, the fact that Porsche has a patent on this unique shape with its sweeping lines and its unmistakable bug eyes, that can be pointed out in a parking lot full of Sport utility vehicles is a unique feature to have . And for some reason every time I come across one I just fall in love with it all over again. Don’t even get me started how the German’s seem to always extract more horsepower out of that 3.8L flat six is mind boggling. The Photo shoot was a blast, our Photographer Mike Febbo had a vision of what he wanted and the end result was nothing short of spectacular. These pictures don’t do the cars justice , if only these pictures had a sound clip to go along with, the high pitch sounding 997 and the low burble of the 996 both naturally aspirated was just music to my ears. Hearing these two cars going thru some the tightest twisties of the canyons was amazing. With out further a due here are some of the pics. Enjoy!

CANDY OEM++ " The Low Life"

The Cali Style has often been imitated never duplicated. People all around the world has been recreating their cars after ours in California for years. It maybe because of our simple approach in adding unique detailed parts to our cars to help us stand out in a sea of mundane cars or maybe its just our laid back attitude. Lets face it , California , especially Southern Cali, is nothing but highways and by ways 4 lane roads of heaven; the weather here is great all year round with no hazardous conditions such as sleet or 80inches. of snow.

Which brings me to these two Candy White Volkswagens you see, Alex’s R32 on AIR and Brandon’s 4 door Gti. Two have very different approaches but the end result is still very classy OEM style with flare. After talking to these two guys you clearly get a picture of where they are going with their cars… AS LOW AS POSSIBLE .Alex’s ride spared no expense seeking out some special help in the department of notching the frame to get the car sitting couple of millimeters lower. Brandon’s Gti had his coilovers wound down as far as it can go to get the 4 dr sitting nice and flush with the VMR wheels.

The words SLOW N LOW comes to mind when thinking about these two cars, because theres nothing else that fits this picture more.Alex’s story behind the whole car started early , when asked about what drew him to the Volkswagen scene was “ The Volkswagen culture is all about getting low , and keeping the OEM flavor, no extreme body kits.” Brandon got in to the VW world after converting over from being a Honda guy , and after several days of car shopping settled for this Sleek 4dr 6 speed. “ The car just felt solid and also had tuning capabilities.” One draw back to having your car wound down , or sitting on air as low as you can get it without rubbing is, every drivers night mare, speed bumps, potholes, drive ways, but who cares its aggressive , its mean, its Loowwwwww

The Bee'z Knees of Setting up a Photoshoot

Now i know what your thinking setting up a photo shoot can sometime be a little bit difficult at times, sometimes arduous. But from my experience and the many times i spent on the phone planning locations, setting up schedules and coordinating a group of people together can be frustrating. So heres a couple of helpful tips that might just put that missing piece of the puzzle in to perspective.

1. Location .. Location .. Location , in every great photo shoot , the finished product is always a tell-tell sign of whether or not you took the time to find a great place to shoot. Now if your having trouble finding a location, any place with a clear background i.e ( no obstructions, like trash, traffic, or a homeless person). Some of the easiest places to shoot is Parking structures, behind buildings, and so on .

2. Planning, planning can sometime be time consuming. Getting everyone to show up on time , and at the same location for the photo shoot is a major plus. Especially if the talent or inanimate object is the one that's lost because of bad directions.

3. Know what your working with, If your taking a photo of a car , know your shots going in to the shoot so you don't take up valuable sunlight time or the client's time. i.e 3/4 , front, rear , right and left quarter panels, low angle shots and detailed shots.

4. Don't be scared to do it , With numerous photo shoots that i've been on, there have been times where i had to bend the rules a little bit. Something i like to call "Guerilla Photo shoots" where you plan, shoot, and get the hell out. But the ideal place to shoot a car or a person , or a thing , is in a controlled environment where you are able to let those creative juices flow freely without any disruptions or Police Officers. To be able to stand out from the rest, most of the time you have to do whatever it takes to get that one Glamour Shot whether its in pre production or post production (Photoshop), be careful and approach everything with caution, and obey traffic laws.

If you follow these 4 easy steps your photo shoot should be a breeze and everyone will enjoy the time they spent with you on the shoot, remember the finished product is always sweeter then the fruit .

Heads or Tails - The Porsche Coin

This week I have driven two very different but both still perfect Porsches. How can two Porsches very different but yet still perfect you ask. Well they are two sides of the same perfect coin I suppose. One is raw, primal and menacing. The other is refined and suave, the pinnacle of automotive technology.

The first 911 is a 2009 997 Carrera S PDK modified by Shark Werks out of Freemont California. The second is a 934 replica based on a 1978 930 turbo built by Autokennel in Costa Mesa California. They are both rear engine, rear drive with the classic 911 shape. They both have flared fenders and are powered by flat sixes. This however is where the similarities end.

The Carrera S is probably one of the best cars built today. It’s comfortable, fast, easy to drive and sexy as hell. The new PDK gearbox is a pleasure to use. It rips off shifts faster than you can possibly imagine. At the same time, it can be as smooth and refined as any automatic out there. Seven speeds means the car is never out of its powerband, and the big seventh returns exceptional highway mileage. The car has launch control, active suspension, stability management, climate control and beautiful iPod integration. This particular car wasn’t equipped with them, but air conditioned seats are even an option. Modifications include a retuned ECU, center exhaust section, Techart Aerokit, HRE Wheels and H&R Springs. Its flat-six is putting out an estimated 410hp at the crank out of its 3.8-liters. Not too shabby for a naturally aspirated engine.

The 934 replica is an incredible example of a project car turned up to 11. The engine was built by the legendary ANDIAL Motorsports. The suspension is all 935 components with monoballs and heim-joints at every pivot point. It only has four forward gears, but the clutch and shifter actuation is amazingly smooth. All the controls are heavy. A small person would have difficulty driving this car because they would be physically exhausted after twenty minutes in the car. The clutch feels like a piece of workout equipment with every actuation. The brake pedal feels like the ball of your foot is right on the back of a brake pad pressing against the rotor, again heavy, but wonderfully tactile. There is no power steering in this car so turning those big front tires is like hauling an anchor up out of the water. If you have never driven a well setup air-cooled 911 you have no business ever commenting on steering feel in a car, you simply have no basis.

Experiencing cars like this back-to-back makes you realize how far we have come technologically. It also makes you realize that when it comes to the actual driving experience, nothing has changed. What makes a great driver’s car is still the same. Tactile feedback between road, car and driver is key. Responsiveness to every command the driver gives and the ever-elusive soul is also a must. Both of these cars fit that bill, just in very different ways.

CAR CRASHES = OBSOLETE

Here's a video from the guys at Fifth gear talking about the Volvo Xc60 that comes with a feature called city safety , this new technology is able to sense if the car is about to crash and will immediately put the brakes on, to stop your precious vehicle from getting in to that fender bender we all dread. check it out.


388+Fifth+Gear+-+Volvo+XC60+City+Safety+Test